Molly Karloff

By Ann Estella



Who is MOLLY KARLOFF? People once asked the same question about Alice Cooper and more recently Greta Van Fleet, Audrey Horne and Florence Black. As it happened, none of them turned out to be shes and similarly, MOLLY KARLOFF follows in their footsteps as an all-male alt-rock/metal band from Oxfordshire, with a fashionable female pseudonym. The power trio dropped their debut 5-track EP entitled 'Dancing For Money' on 3rd September 2018, having recorded it four years ago at Cream Studios in London with Engineer/Producer Richard Aitken of Nimrod Sound.

After a bit of a hiatus, the band, which was originally called Conspiracy Of Ravens when it formed back in 2014, changed its name to MOLLY KARLOFF (allegedly in homage to the imaginary, belligerent daughter of Boris Karloff) and original members, singer-songwriter/guitarist Simon Guilliard and bassist Tomasz Dworczyk, came back energized and determined to give it a fresh crack of the whip, together with new drummer Wojtek Broda.

Guilliard’s lyrics are borne out of his rejection of a strict Jehovah’s Witness upbringing and all the tracks carry a socially charged message, defiantly sticking two fingers up at life’s flagrant injustices. Proceedings get underway with the record’s title track, which takes a dig at misogyny and sexual exploitation. Squealing heavy rock guitars slice their way through a riff-driven song, whose sleaze-soaked grooves mirror its lyrics, reflecting the seediness of the lap dancing business.

Second track ‘Out Of My Way’ imposes its mighty presence with wailing, grunge-fuelled guitar solos and dynamic hooks, in a throat-grabbing track about ridding yourself of the people who stand in your way and try to keep you down. A catchy, hard-hitting song about drugs, specifically ‘Cocaine’, is next in line for the MOLLY KARLOFF treatment, through a passionate, gritty vocal delivery reinforced by a pounding rhythm section. The bleak parting words “So you don’t like all the things I say… you know it won’t matter anyway”, paint a picture of the futility of trying to reason with somebody who’s been afflicted with addiction.

Penultimate track ‘Running Through Shadows’ opens with lyrics that remind me a little of G’n’R’s ‘Estranged’ every time I hear them; “So this isn’t the way you thought it would be…”

There’s a steady, hard rock edge inherent in this song that gives it a forceful bite and there’s a familiarity about it that makes me feel like I’ve heard this well-composed, face-melter before.

Assertive anti-religion track ‘Hocus Pocus’ brings the record to its roaring conclusion, with lyrics that don’t hold back; “Jesus is a lie that you say you’d die for, bigots of the world you’ve got your faith and your mind is closed.”

All in all, 'Dancing For Money' is a slickly produced, no-holds-barred debut from a band that has spontaneously clicked into place and erupted onto the scene with a sucker punch! Alice, Greta, Audrey and Florence all set a shining example, but now perhaps it’s Molly’s turn to dazzle as the belligerent, badass, Belle of the ball!

MOLLY KARLOFF will be kicking off the New Year with a show at London’s The Fiddler’s Elbow on 4th January 2019 and plan on recording more of their back catalogue of written material in 2019.

'Dancing For Money' is available on Spotify and most other streaming platforms.

You can watch the music video for ‘Dancing For Money’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGhUr7ey3Vs

Molly Karloff are:
Simon Guilliard - Vocals/Guitars
Tomasz Dworczyk – Bass
Wojtek Broda - Drums

Tracklisting:
Dancing For Money
Out Of My Way
Cocaine
Running Through Shadows
Hocus Pocus

Links:
https://mollykarloff.co.uk/music/
https://www.facebook.com/MollyKarloff/ - Down The Front Media